Thai Place
(between N 21st St & N 22nd St)
Washington, DC 20037 (202) 298-8204
- Nearest Transit:
Foggy Bottom|GWU (Blue, Orange)
- Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: Yes
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: Yes
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: Yes
- Good for: Dinner
26 Reviews for Thai Place
The food was about as exiting as the originality of the restaurant's name [yes, sarcasm intended], but hey, dishes were dirt cheap and palatable--so why not? I'm a student, I can't have high standards.
Ambiance: dark, quiet, relaxing (AIR-CONDITIONED, SCORE!...sorry, not an East-coast native but a dry/sunny CA kid).
Service: fast delivery, but check took forever.
Portions: just right (for an Asian female anyway).
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My first exposure to Thai food, and honestly I really enjoy it. I'm not sure if I like it so much because it was my first or because it's really that good. In any case, I've tried thai food elsewhere but I can't help coming back to Thai Place. Of course, the fact that the prices are very reasonable and the wait staff is nice doesn't hurt.
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This place is fine for a quick lunch break if you are working or going to school in the Foggy Bottom area. It certainly is not the best Thai food I've ever have but not the worst.
The kitchen is very efficient and the wait staff is pleasant. The pad thai is average, and fine for those days when you really have a craving. I've specified "spicy" on a few of my dishes here and all they do is add a few red pepper flakes, which is not only disappointing but doesn't really add the spicy, smoky complexity to the dish that I am craving.
My favorite entree here is the panang curry, and it's the best thing I've had on their menu. I order the chicken but ask them to add steamed tofu (which I pay an arm and a leg for, but it's so worth it). The portion is quite large so I usually have leftovers for another day.
Thai Place also has a small, outdoor seating area that is nice for a sunny day. I'd recommend this place for lunch but not really for a date night or a group of friends - there are lots of better Thai places in the city for that. With restaurant options limited in the Foggy Bottom area, this is a regular for me.
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I don't have much experience with Thai food, but what I had was really tasty. I had the chive dumplings, which pleased me and my veggie friend. For an entree I had the Siam Steak, which was nice and SPICY! The $2.50 happy hour beer was nice, and sitting outside on a beautiful spring evening was a dream.
Good service, water glass stayed full and the waiter always smiled.
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Mmmm, peanut sauce.
Went to Thai Palace with my friends Travis and Randy for dinner tonight. I'd been craving a good plate of curry for a while now, so when Randy made the brilliant decision to choose a Thai restaurant over TGI Fridays, I happily supported him.
The place felt a little cramped, but that might have been because of the hordes of people in the restaurant. Must be a popular dinner spot. Large groups of student/professor types occupied the tables and booths around us. But despite the crowd, the service was super efficient. Our waitress came up to us within moments after we sat down, and hovered near our table until we ordered.
Randy and I both got the Panang Curry, which came with our choice of meat in panang curry, peanut sauce, coconut milk, and steamed broccoli garnished with basil leaves. Travis, who is allergic to wheat, got the Pad Thai with rice noodles, stir-fried chicken, egg, bean sprouts and ground peanut. Within what seemed like only 10 minutes of ordering, our food arrived. The Panang curries came generously heaped in large bowls, prettily garnished with basil and pieces of red bell pepper. Travis' pad thai was nicely arranged on a giant flat plate that looked like a frisbee. Everything looked yummy. A+ for presentation.
Mmmm, peanuts. For me, the best part of Thai food is the peanut sauce. I dont like peanut butter, but rice and meat and veggies drenched in sweet peanut sauce and savory/spicy curry is pretty much the best comfort food ever. My Panang curry was delicious and damned comforting. The sauce was the perfect thickness, and the flavor was slightly sweet and very savory from the peanuts and pork. Yummm! I wish my serving of rice were larger, but overall that curry was just what I needed to take the edge off before frantically studying for finals. I wanted to try some of Travis' pad thai, but it was gone almost before I'd eaten half of my dish. Must have been pretty good.
5 stars for food and atmosphere, -1 for over-solicitous waitress who hovered too much and leaned over my plate constantly in her eagerness to refill our water.
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I had dinner at this place on Monday. Living near Sriprapahi, the best Thai restaurant in NYC, I don't expect much from Thai restaurants but this place wasn't bad. I had the chicken coconut soup and the Thai Place noodles. Both of which were good. My friends had the Tom Yum soups, papaya salad and pad Thai. Everything tasted decent and nothing was bad. The waitress was kind of oblivious to our request for checks, but you win some and you lose some.
After having had enough experience with this place, I'll say that you should only really go here if you don't care much how you're treated in a restaurant and only want a cheap fix of Thai food. (It's popular amongst GW students because of the convenience.) Sure, the interior's nice, and yeah, it's cheap, but the waitresses can give the impression that you're invading their space by dining at their establishment... which is a not a feeling I want to get if I decide to dine out.
I was considering 3 stars because the food itself is inexpensive for Thai and has been acceptable on almost every visit, but I'm gonna dock one because come on - there are just plenty of other choices in DC. Go somewhere where the food and the atmosphere's better. I'm picky about my Thai food. Their Thai Iced Tea is decent, though.
P.S. A previous reviewer was correct in saying that the tofu that comes with some of the dishes is weirdly squishy. It makes me sound like a bitter vegetarian but Thai restaurants should know their tofu, at least.
I had lunch here with a friend...we shared the green curry with chicken and the panang beef. The entrees were very basic, in my opinion, but portions were generous with lots of gravy. We liked the panang for its richness - it is a reddish sauce with some coconut. Rice was well done but we could have used a little extra for all the delicious gravy! The entrees were reasonable for a downtown lunch spot, at about $8-9 each.
We sat outdoors and service was prompt., but the outdoor seating space is limited All in all, a decent lunch place if you have a hankering for Thai.
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This place is very good for the Foggy Bottom location - affordable for lunch and dinner, nice ambiance, fast service. My red curry chicken was good! Kind of a secret place. SCARED of all the food poisoning comments. I do miss SF every day of my life, and the Thai options there.
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Having spent a good 21 days in Thailand last summer, I feel like Thai Place really does a great job with the dishes they serve there.
I really suggest the Panang Curry with tofu or seafood. It's amazing. I usually get it as spicy as possible, but if you're not a fan of spicy foods, you can always get the more mild massaman curry.
The atmosphere is pleasant, but since it's right on the edge of the GWU campus, the majority of people there are students who have figured out that Thai Place is one of the most lenient businesses when it comes to checking i.d's. That being said, you might feel uncomfortable eating there on a weekend night unless you're willing to brave rowdy college kids.
I'm usually so stuffed after getting dinner here that I can barely fit through the door frame, but if you somehow managed to pack it away and are left wanting more, go for the desserts. And let me tell you, if bliss were a food, it would be a heaping helping of sticky, coconut rice goodness (aka mango sticky rice) and a Thai iced tea. Ohhh man.
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Ok, so food poisoning aside....why the hell does everyone like this place so much???????
Sure it's cheap, but would you eat dog crap for dinner just because it was cheap??
I eat Thai food 4-5 times a week and there is nothing good about this place. The food is NEVER spicy. All the curries have a faint hint of soap. The noodles are greasy and the service is terrible. As well, I'm always freezing in the winter and boiling in the summer. The spring rolls are fine, but how hard is it to take them out of the freezer and dump them in the deep fryer. And god forbid you get adventurous and order off the specials...
Look people I don't fault your reviews, but you have just never had even decent Thai. Try Mai Thai on 19th and then get back to me.
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Not bad. Had the chicken Himmapaan Stir Fry. Just got takeout so can't comment on the service. It was pretty sweet, but nice and filling.
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The Tom Yum here is pretty damn good and a lot cheaper than usual. It was nice and spicy but not quite as good as the Regent.
I also had a veggie noodle dish, pretty good but greasy. Also, it didn't stay in my system for long, if you know what I mean.
I'd say this place is good if you're in the hood and want some greasy thai.
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Good food, medicore service.
A group of about six of us tried out the Thai Place on Friday night after hearing rave reviews.
The food was good and the portions were sizable. (We especially liked the veggie spring roll appetizer and the shrimp pad thai.)
But the service left a lot to be desired with the waitress confusing drink orders, bringing out appetizers we didn't order, and mixing up entrees. Everyone has a rough day once in awhile, so we may have hit the place on a fluke-night. But come prepared for a little wait regardless, its a pretty crowded place on the weekend.
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Decent food. Not bad. Great for the price (keep in mind, you're still in the NW). The drinks are great and the desserts are amazing. Personally, screw the diet and come here for their weird drinks, mango and sticky rice and thai iced tea.
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EDIT: Following writing this review, which I did within 30 minutes of eating there, I came down with food poisoning. I would not eat here again.
I went here after reading numerous reviews that it was really good. Umm...yeah, not so much. I was starving and it still didn't taste that great.
I ordered the Pad Thai, my favorite. Let's just say that I am a Pad Thai connoiseur. Thai Place was just not good. It was really saucy and greasy which I found very odd. It should have a light sauce but still a good amount of flavor.
It was fairly cheap. And they did specialize the order for me, but overall it wasn't great and probably wouldn't go back, even if I did I definitely would not order the Pad Thai.
I walked away thinking well the only good part about the meal was that I wasn't hungry anymore.
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YUUUUUUUM. I crave this place on a regular basis. Super cheap for lunch, cheap for dinner and absolutely delicious thai food. They have undergone a few management changes (i think they got caught serving alcohol to minors on the GW meal plan- how i miss those days...). However, the service and food have only gotten better as a result. If youve got a little extra cash and feel like a splurge, get dessert here! The green tea ice cream is my favorite, but all of the desserts are great (yes, ive tried them all). Im pretty sure they deliver, but Im not sure what their range is. I should find out so I dont have to haul my butt down to foggy every time I get a craving...
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Good food, generous portions, and very decent prices. I had the Tom Yum soup, and it was very good. My friend had some kind of chicken with peanut sauce, and it was delicious as well.
Update: Went back today, and they have great red curry chicken!
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Great place to go for good Thai food with decent prices. It's a small narrow restaurant, so be prepared for a wait. That was it well worth it though..especially with their curry dishes. The outside seating is also great is you can get it.
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Well, it's no thai coast, but if I really don't want to walk those extra four blocks I go here. The pad thai is better here than at thai coast, though. The drunken noodle is okay, though the fresh garden rolls are what I really enjoy.
This place is a quick and easy fix for Thai, and it's priced okay. Not a bad option at all.
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I ate here last week and it was fantastic. My dining partners had Pad Thai, and I had the vegetable fried rice. All of our entrees were about $10 and wonderful. They have the fancy-name kind of drinks, like mai tais and tropical rainfalls, for $5.50. Service was great, and we had fabulous seats out on the sidewalk. Eating out on a sidewalk makes me love a restaurant.
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I used to love Thai Place (I was addicted to their fried rice) until I got food poisoning there in October 2005 from the kee mow chicken. I haven't been back since.
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This place has great food at incredibly affordable prices. Actually it is just "THAI PLACE", there is no The in the name. Anyway, I found it ironic that the people I were meeting could not recall the name of the restaurant. They were just saying "it's a THAI PLACE, next to Mehran."
Food here is quality and dirt cheap. Some lunch dishes are as cheap as 5.99. Most recently I had the dinner portion of the Kee Mow Noodle, which was excellent. It was Stir-fried wide rice noodles, garlic, chili, tomatoes and basil in house special sauce, and chicken. It was spicy but not too hot, and had lots of tasty basil leaves. My friend ordered the Pad Thai and an alcoholic juice drink, pinapple colada I think.
This restaurant is very long and narrow. The service here can be slow. They do have an outdoor section on the sidewalk which allows you too look out at Penn. Ave toward Washington Circle or East in the direction of the White House.
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I love this place. For anyone who spends all day at GWU, this is a great alternative to the Marvin Center and Ivory Tower. It's not too pricey and it's an actual meal! The restaurant is small and narrow, but very cute. I usually get food to go, but even when I've eaten here the service is good.
All the dishes I've tried have been good (mostly the curry dishes). But my favorite is the Thai Place Noodles - seafood, fat rice noodles, and a light but a little bit spicy curry sauce.
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One of my old haunts conveniently located in Foggy Bottom.
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hmph.. what is it about places that are named after their cuisine?? well, apparently around the DC area, it's already a sign of goood good food! .. the thai place. is well, straightfoward and exact.. it's a place with thai food and i will say, it's delish..
located near georgetown, this place is owned by thai people, not korean or chinese thai wannabes that jump on the bandwagon.. that's why this is the f-in' thai place!!!.. yes, it's small, yes... it's a bit of a wait. (if busy).. but hey.. it's clean, it's neat, and there is a bar.. the gods are shining down on you too, because not only is there a bar... it's a cheap bar.. and nothing like a hole in the wall to bring your coworkers together for a lil' happy hour of love...
can you also say.. thai iced tea ?? mmm mmm good.. here's the three basics as to why this place is the shizzle for my tummizzle and nice on the pocketizzle..
1) it's cheap.. nothing over 15.. and the portions will give you something to talk about .. how about FOOO- OOOOO --OOOOODD~... please.. open the menu and scream hallelujah- HALLELUJAH!.. say hell yeah - HEEELLLLL YEAH.. say gimme some boo- nevermind..
2) the food is good.. of course, like all places. you must be wise with what you order my grasshopper friend.. pad thai, pineapple fried rice.. the curry dishes.. you can't go wrong.. and at under 8-12 bones.. you can splurge and feel like a rich man and order two dishes.. and be like.. " i need the variety" .. however, one thing i've had that's not a great recommendation is the siam steak.. lil' on the steak and lots of not-so-great sauce.. that damn achilles heel..
3) the atmosphere is nice for coworkers lunches, maybe for a low key dinner, and if your date is a bit of a foodie, she'll prolli like it too.. it's not the place a napkin in your lap for you typa venue, but hey.. it's under 15 a person.. deal with it.
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